Folding chair.



A. D. CONVERSE.

FOLDING CHAlR.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 5, 1913.

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ATHERTON D. CONVERSE, OF WINCHENDON, MASSACHUSETTS.

FOLDING CHAIR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 16, 1916.

Application filed April 5, 1913. Serial No. 759,225.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, ATHERTON D. CON- vnnsn, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of VVinohendon, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding Chairs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to collapsible rockers and particularly to that class of rockers in which the side members are connected by a folding seat and a folding back.

The object of the present invention is to provide means for preventing the accidental collapsing of the back and at the same time form a support for the folding seat when sustaining a weight.

The invention consists primarily in providing the under face of the seat with shoulders and the back with shoulder engaging members which will coact with said shoulders when said seat and back are extended, but which may be quickly disengaged therefrom when it is desired to fold said seat and back to permit the side members to be moved toward each other.

The invention further consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts which will be fully understood by reference to the description of the drawings and to the claim hereinafter given.

Of the drawings: Figure 1 represents a longitudinal section of a rocker embodying the features of the present invention, the cutting plane being on line 1-1 on Fig. 2. Fig. 2 represents an inverted plan of the same. Fig. 3 represents a rear elevation of the same, and Fig. 4 represents a transverse section of a portion of the same drawn to an enlarged scale, the cutting plane being on line H on Fig. 1.

Similar characters designate like parts throughout the several figures of the drawlII S.

In the drawings, 10 represents a side frame which may be of any desired shape, as, for instance, the shape of a horse or other animal, as indicated in Fig. 1 of the drawings. The frame 10 is composed in part of a curved rocker member 11 adapted to rest upon the floor and rock in the usual manner. Interposed between the side frames 10 is a folding seat 12 centrally divided at 13, the two portions of said seat being connected together by a long hinge 14:

extending longitudinally thereof. This hinge is secured to the two parts of the seat portion 12 so that said seat portion may be folded upwardly about the pivot of said hinge when desired. The opposite edges of said seat are pivotally connected to the side frames 10 by means of hinges 15 secured to the upperface of the seat 12 and the inner face of the side frames as clearly indicated in the drawings. The seat 12 is also provided with a back 18 centrally divided at 19, said back being wholly disconnected from the seat portion 12. The two parts of the back 18 are pivotally secured together by means of hinges 20 extending longitudinally thereof and secured to its front face so that said back is adapted to fold rearwardly as desired. The opposite edges of the back 18 are pivotally secured by hinges 21 or other means to the side frames 10.

Secured to the rear face of each of the parts of the divided back 18 is a 'U-shaped member 22, one end of which extends forwardly and is adapted to engage with a shoulder in the lower face of the seat 12. Preferably this shoulder is formed by cutting a groove 23 into the under portion of said seat. When the back 18 is in extended position as shown in the drawings the final extension of the seat portion 12 will force the upturned ends of the U-shaped members 22 into the grooves 23 with the extreme edges thereof contacting with the inner walls of said grooves. The back 18 will then be locked so that it will be impossible to fold it until these upturned ends are again removed from said grooves 23 and at the same time the seat 12 will be supported thereon relieving the strain upon the hinges 15.

The prime object of a device of this character is that it shall be safe against accidental collapse while in use by a child but which will be easily folded when not in use. The construction set forth provides a seat which cannot become disengaged from its supporting means while the seat is occupied and in which the weight on the seat holds the back, against which the child naturallyrests, securely locked against out ward movement. By this construction the usual latch for the back 18 is entirely dispensed with, thereby lessening the cost of manufacture and simplifying the operation of the device while a much greater rigidity is given to the rocker than it has been possible to attain in any other manner.

When it is desired to collapse the rocker pressure is applied to the under face of the seat to lift it sufliciently about the hinges until the upturned ends of the members 22 are disengaged from the grooves 23 and when this has been accomplished both the seat 12 and back 18 will fold together to permit the side members 10 to be moved to-. ward each other. The members 22 are at different distances from the center of the back 18 so that they will not interfere with each other during the folding of said back. By this construction a perfectly rigid rocker is secured. 4

It is believed that the operation and many advantages of this invention will be fully understood from the foregoing description.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

In a device of the class described, the combination of two side members, a centrally divided seat having its two parts hinged together and each half hinged to one of the side members, a centrally divided back having its two parts hinged together and each half hinged to one of the side members, and locking means carried by the separate parts of the back and engaging the separate parts of the seat arranged. to release the back to permit folding when the seat is lifted.

Signed by me at WVinchendon, Mass, this 27th day of March, 1913.

ATHERTON D. CONVERSE.

Witnesses:

NELLIE M. DRISCOLL, E. KATHERINE ALLEN.

Copies 01' this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). G. 

